The Freedom
by D3sstorjo
Summary: Misty and May formulate a plan to set Dawn up with Paul, but they were oblivious to the fact that he would be that hand that pulled her from those murky waters. -IKARISHIPPING-


S

econd One-shot! Ohohoh, I promised myself, that I would make this one-shot longer. If I don't make it long enough, I will prove myself lamme. D: Anyways, I hope you enjoy, and please review! :D Sorry, I was going to call this fanfiction 'Horror House' but then I ended up changing the name because it wasn't really all about the horror house in the story, it's a lot more than that.

**Summary:** Summary: Dawn is shoved into the horror house in a carnival by her friends. She fortunately bumps into Paul. Fortunately...right? Ikarishipping -one shot-

**Disclaimer: **I DO NOT OWN POKEMON. USE YER WITTLE NOGGINS'

* * *

**:The Guilty, The Free~**

The sunlight danced across the sky as the sun slowly rose. Around six o'clock on Saturday was when the birds started to chirp, searching for their breakfast. Already at this time, the world was bustling with life. Aware or not, Dawn Berlitz, a seventeen year old, fashion-loving girl, was enjoying her beauty rest.

Her breathing was silent contrasting the arousing morning outside her small, rectangular glass window. Lace curtains draped over the window gently and cascaded down the side of the window ledge, blocking most of the sunlight from entering the room.

She shuffled in her bed, turning over to show her face from over the pink silky pillow. Dawn's mid-night blue hair was like a trip back to twelve a clock at night, her hair pins shone like stars in her hair.

She moaned something incoherent and pulled out her ivory skinned arm from under her pink and white quilt. She smiled after a moment, and sighed.

She reached her arms out gently and grasped onto her silky pink pillow, burring her face into it lovingly.

Her breathing hitched for a long moment, and her cobalt blue eyes momentarily shot open. She tilted her head slightly to the side, tangling her long, mid-night blue hair, but closed her eyes once again in realization that today was the weekend.

Dawn situated herself in her pink bed once again, and snuggled into her blankets. A smile graced her lips, but she stopped herself when the smell of hot cakes wafted into her room.

She moaned again and sat up, groggily rubbing her eyes. She felt her stomach rumble silently, before it growled angrily for food. Dawn yanked on her hair and tried to run her fingers through the tangles, but failed miserably. Instead of getting herself frustrated from the failed attempt, she pulled her silky blue hair back into a high pony tail, not caring to go check what it looked like in the mirror.

She scratched her cheeks vigorously and blinked a few times to get used to the light. Dawn reached her hands up into the air and groaned. Her body seemed to relax after a few moments of her stretch, and she put her arms down.

After Dawn had finished her morning routine of stretches in bed, she decided to get out of bed. She swung her petite feet over the bed quickly and placed on foot on the cold, hard-wood floor. She almost slipped from her clumsiness, but caught her bed sheet.

"Ah…" She mumbled and staggered up. Her feet were numb from lack of blood, but she quickly got used to it when she walked over to the bathroom.

She navigated her way to her also overly-pink bathroom, and found her pink toothbrush. She squeezed her bubblegum flavored toothpaste onto the white bristles on the pink brush, and slowly placed the toothbrush in her mouth.

She worked her way over each tooth, making sure that they were sparkling clean when she spat out the foaming toothpaste. Dawn quickly rinsed her mouth, and splashed her face with water before she wiped her mouth and face.

"Dawn!" Johanna called from outside her door. There was a light knock on Dawn's door following soon after the call. Dawn sighed and placed her toothbrush down lightly on the sink's white marble counter.

"Yes?" Dawn replied slowly, still tired from the fact that she just woke up. She looked at her reflection in the mirror and gasped in horror. Her hair was imperfect in every way. Her bangs were pushed to both sides split in the middle awkwardly, and her long mid-night blue hair was bunched together in giant knots. She gave a painful sigh before her mother responded.

"Is there something wrong?" Johanna frowned and brusquely knocked on the door once more, but with more urgency.

"No…not really…" Dawn's answer was vague, worrying her mother further than she thought.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Johanna frowned from the other side of the door. Her blue hair fell slightly as she hung her head. Her face was twisted with worry.

"No need to worry! I can fix this…" Dawn quoted her infamous catchphrase before and mumbled the last part to herself. She picked up her pink comb, and undid her ponytail, letting her mid-night blue hair cascade down to her hips.

"Dawn…," Johanna started from behind the door again, this time her back was against the door. "That's when you worry me the most…" Dawn's mother's frown deepened, but she started down the stairs. "Just to let you know, I finished making the hot cakes, so when you are ready, come downstairs and eat some okay?" Johanna, now at the foot of the stairs called up to her daughter.

Dawn nodded, but realized her mother couldn't see so, so she gave a quick chirp of an answer. "'Kay." She strained her voice, hoping to be as cheery as possible. She once again focused on her attention on her hair. She brushed her comb into her hair painfully, multiple times, trying to get it as smooth and silky as she could.

The phone rang loudly from downstairs, stunning Dawn. In her clumsiness, she jumped slightly and yanked on her hair. She squeaked in pain and bit her lip to prevent herself from making such noises again. She was about to curse to herself, when her mother called her from downstairs.

"Dawn, you have a phone call for you?" Johanna yelled hoarsely.

Dawn raised her brow and poked her index fingers together. She sure hoped it was a jock at her school, wanting to ask her out, but of course, she knew that it wasn't going to happen. Indeed, Dawn Berlitz was not as self confident as she seemed. Sure she was bubbly and had a lot of friends, including guys, but she didn't see herself pretty enough to be dated.

Although she thinks these things, the truth is actually that Dawn is prettier than she thinks. She is too pretty actually. She never realized the beautiful flow of her mid-night blue hair, almost a shade darker than her cobalt blue eyes that pierced anyone she met from under her naturally thick blue lashes. She was petite, but athletic and strong. Her ivory skin looked smooth and soft, spotless from any blemishes. She was strong-willed, and hard-working, and oblivious to the fact that she had many admirers.

After a few seconds of consideration of the caller, she decided to ask who it was. She parted her lips, watching her every actions in the mirror, but before she could ask her mom, her pink razor cell phone started to buzz irregularly, indicating that it was a call, not a text message.

Dawn's cobalt blue eyes shot down small screen the front of the cell phone. Usually it would tell what time it was, but instead, it her friends name scrolled across the screen slowly. Dawn lifted her arm and picked up her phone lightly. She slipped her finger nail through the small crack between the two sides of the flip phone, and whipped her phone open.

She pressed her pink razor to the side of her face, feeling the cold metallic material hit her warm cheeks. She waited for her friend's voice to ring on the other end.

"'Ello mate!" May giggled. She was obviously happy and hyper this weekend morning. May's voice stunned Dawn on the other end, making her jump slightly and shake her head disapprovingly.

"May…" Dawn whined, she was still tired for just waking up and she was also frustrated with her early morning experience with hair crisis. "You're crazy to be so hyper when it's so early in the morning…" Dawn responded, making her voice drawl a bit longer than usual.

"Well, it looks like someone woke up on the wrong side of bed!" Misty chimed from the other end, where Dawn was expecting May's voice.

"Maybe I did…I think I usually get up on the right side, but today I woke up on the left side…" Dawn's lips turned into a frown. Her ivory skin bunched together as she did so.

"Dawn," Misty snorted, "It's a saying!" She gave an airy laugh from the other side, not fully amused by her friend's guible behavior.

"I don't really get it Misty…stop making fun of me…" Dawn whined and squeezed her eyes shut. She lightly picked up a comb, and brushed her bangs to the side, making her navy blue hair swept out of her eyes.

"She's not making fun of you…" May sighed loudly. Her breath created a loud crackling noise on the other end of the line.

"Let's hope you're not…" Dawn grumbled to herself. Her eyes widened with curiosity and she pondered to herself before she asked the question out loud. "Why…did you guys even call me?" Dawn breathed into the phone. Her eyes showed wonder almost like a glimmer of curiosity, but of course, May and Misty couldn't see this.

"Hm…" Misty pondered out loud. May sighed and a loud bang from the other end sounded. Misty laughed but shouted something incoherent. May just laughed and continued to speak to Dawn. "We were going to ask you if you wanted to go to the Regional Carnival up at Hearthome!" May said enthusiastically. Dawn swore that she could see the giant smile spreading across her friends face.

"Okay…number one…what did you do to Misty? And number two, why?" Dawn said slowly from one end of the phone. Dawn gripped onto her pink razor, preparing for the worst.

"Oh, Misty? Please, I just pushed her onto the bed!" May let out a short laugh and got back to answering Dawn's second question. "Oh, well we were going to go hang out with the guys there…I was wondering if you wanted to go because _Paul_ is going to be there." May emphasized on Paul's name, fully aware of Dawn's little crush on him.

"I don't like him! He's a heartless, cold, good for nothing JERK!" Dawn retorted loudly from the other end of the phone. Her face was lit up with a deep, rosy red blush, and her cobalt blue eyes blinked rapidly.

"PLEASE, I know for a fact that right now, you're probably blushing a be_yoot_iful shade of tomato red!" May snorted, which after a short while, turned into a giggle.

"I-I am not!" Dawn stuttered nervously. She tried to cover her mouth, but the stutter had already slipped out of her bubble gum pink lips, which she pursed together after realization that she gave out her secret.

"Seriously Dawn, it's so obvious that you like him…I mean, who wouldn't besides me and Misty?" May laughed lightly.

"What?" Dawn whined and pursed her lips even tighter. Jealousy burned in her chest the moment May pointed it out. It was true that after six years, everyone had changed a lot. Dawn was curvier and taller. Her beautiful navy blue hair was to her hips. Paul was much taller and had a stronger build. His demeanor didn't change much though, which frustrated Dawn.

May laughed out loud and readjusted the phone in her hand. "So are you in?" She asked to confirm her friend's appearance at the carnival.

"I g-guess so…" Dawn muttered slowly, hoping that May didn't hear her, because she knew what was coming next, and it was going to irritate her deeply.

"Aww! So you like Paul!" May gushed into her cell phone. She repeated herself over fifty times before Dawn finally exploded.

"SHUT UP!" Dawn whined loudly. May only responded with a snort on the other end. In this convenient time, Misty decided to come back and join the conversation. "Don't worry," Misty said slowly, while May was still snorting, "We've got a plan to set you up with Paul!" She exclaimed happily.

"So you better come." May said flatly. Dawn felt that her aura changed dramatically through the phone. It was the 'You-better-come-or-else-your-butt-is-going-to-be-whooped' aura.

Dawn shuddered, but managed to mumble out a mere "Okay." She squeaked in fright and bit her lower lip.

"Okay, we'll see you then!" May chirped, having her infamous mood swings. May paused for a moment and breathed softly into the phone. "We know this plan will work." Her voice sounded sly, making Dawn suspicious.

"Um…okay…bye." Dawn responded shakily. Her hand shook slightly and her eyes widened from her friend's intensive aura. Dawn sucked in a sharp breath. She knew that skipping out on this carnival was inevitable because May would hunt her down and drag her there anyways.

"Okay, see you there then, three o'clock sharp!" May chirped and hung up the phone quickly. Dawn's gasp on the phone loosened because of the sweat from her hand. A bead of sweat ran down the side of Dawn's cheek slowly as Dawn let out that breath that she inhaled.

"God…would it kill May to be a normal person for once?" The blunette grumbled to herself as her arm fell limply at her side. Her phone was still opened, leaving the screen to flash to a screensaver. A picture of her and a chestnut haired boy popped onto the screen. The chestnut haired boy had an arm hung around Dawn's small shoulders and he held up a peace sign while Dawn gave a wink and stuck her tongue out.

Dawn sighed at the picture and snapped the phone shut angrily. The picture was still ingrained in her mind which made her incredibly pissed. Sadly, she couldn't erase the picture of her ex-boyfriend on her phone.

After she dumped him, she still felt the need to be friends, so she left the piece of guilt on her screensaver. Dawn sighed and frowned in the mirror. She ran her fingers through her hair and felt the feeling of guilt build up in her stomach.

"I'm so screwed. I can never face Kenny ever again…" Dawn whined and checked in the mirror one final time. She was still dressed in her crinkled pink pajamas. She put a finger to her chin and thought for a while. _I wonder if I should wear something nicer…since Paul's going to be there… _Dawn thought to herself. She shook her head furiously when she realized what she was thinking. "I don't like him…" Dawn whined and pivoted to face the door. She sighed and turned the cool bronze door knob more quickly than she expected.

The door flung back, letting a gush of air, blow her blue locks out of her face. Her hair cascaded down and hung loosely in front of her face. Dawn pouted to herself and blew the bang out of her face.

She quickly made her way over to closet. She glared into the dark void of clothes for a moment, but then something caught her eyes. A cute, hot-pink, belted, u-necked tunic stuck out from under her clothes. She picked it up quickly, and matched it with a gray and fuchsia striped undershirt. After Dawn placed them over her head, she pulled on a pair of gray skinny jeans. She adjusted the silver belt quickly, grabbed a black purse decorated with zippers, and flew down the stair steps.

"You look nice!" Dawn's mom complimented. "Are you going somewhere?" Johanna's lips upturned to a smile. She was suspecting, or hoping for a date.

"Not really…I'm just going to the carnival with my friends." Dawn sighed, knowing what her mother was truly implying.

"Aww, you're no fun." Johanna pouted and gently placed a bottle in front of the plate of hotcakes.

Dawn pulled out the chair lightly, making sure that the chair didn't scrape the wood floor. She nodded a thanks to her mom and quickly scarfed down her food.

"Goodness! Dawn! If you eat any faster, you'll puke out your brains." Johanna shouted, and pulled the plate away from under Dawn.

"Mom," Dawn whined, her mouth was still full of food. "I'm not going to puke out my brains…" She bit her lower lip and added, "At least I don't eat as fast as Ash or May. Anyways, I think I'm done, so I'm going to go now." Dawn skipped out of the kitchen and into the living room that was next to the front door.

"Dawn, make sure you don't do anything rash without my permission okay?" Johanna shouted from the kitchen.

"No need to worry mom, if I get in trouble, I'll always call you okay?" Dawn flashed her mother a smile and grabbed her keys. She flung open the door, and within seconds, she had left the house.

"That's when I worry the most…" Johanna sighed. She bit her lower lip and narrowed her eyes at the front door where Dawn just left.

* * *

"Ugh, Move your butt May!" Dawn growled as she entered the convertible car. May giggled, not budging. Her legs slung over all three seats like she was lounging in the back.

"Dawn, just sit in shot-gun." Misty sighed and patted the seat next to hers. She sat in the driver's seat, luckily at the age appropriate to drive, unlike her friends who were too lazy to get a license. Dawn hesitated, but reluctantly climbed into the passenger seat. "There, that wasn't that bad right?" Misty said sarcastically with an eye roll.

"Shut up…" Dawn murmured and shut the car door beside her. She pulled her zipper purse into her lap and slipped on some sunglasses. "Tell me why I'm here again?" Dawn questioned loudly since the Misty had started to drive, and the wind rippled through their hair, making it hard to hear what each one of them were saying.

"You know exactly why you're coming with us." May sang in the back. She still lounged in the back three seats. May closed her eyes and inhaled. The air around them was filled with giggles. "Dawn and Paul, sitting in a tree-," May started to sing. She held up her finger and waved it in the air with a laugh.

"Don't you dare." Dawn growled and whipped around from her seat. She grabbed the shoulder of the seat to keep herself in the position. May continued to sing while Dawn shouted at her.

"Guys, just be quiet. I'm concentrating on driving! I can't do that if you guys keep yelling!" Misty shook her head. She spoke mainly to Dawn. "AND MAY! Stop lounging on the chairs, it's illegal, we'll get arrested if you don't freaking sit up and buckle up you're dang seatbelt!" Misty raised her voice a little bit more from when she was speaking to Dawn.

"Calm down Misty…" May said quietly. She slowly sat up and stretched. Dawn and Misty rolled their eyes. May yawned and stretched the seat belt over her chest. Dawn sighed in relief when she finally heard the click of the seat belt locking in place.

"May, why are you so reckless, it makes me want to strangle you to death sometimes." Dawn grumbled to herself from the front seat and fixed her hair since it was billowing freely in the air.

"Sometimes, but you know, the other time when I'm not wanted to be strangles, you can't deny that you love me." May snorted and waved away the comment like it was a fly.

"Sure, sure…keep on dreaming girl." Misty giggled as she kept her eyes on the road. A large Ferris wheel had started to peak out from over the hill they were driving up. The sun shone behind it, giving it a majestic look.

"Whoa!" May cried as she eyed the whole carnival. It seemed to be bustling with life. People crowded in the streets to play the games from the stands, and people were lined up to ride on amusement rides. The place was filled with smiles, laughs and screams.

"Suddenly, I'm glad I came!" Dawn laughed and slung her purse over her shoulder. She smiled brightly and glanced at the Carnival in front of her eyes. Colors were flying everywhere and banners danced gracefully in the air, following the rhythm of the breeze.

"You sure should be glad that we invited you because we are going to get you together with your true love, Paul!" Misty said happily. She lifted her hands and clapped them for a second, but immediately placed her hands back on the wheel in realization that they swerved.

"Hmm, don't be so full of yourself misty, I'm going to set you up with Ash!" May smirked and clasped her hands together. She grinned cruelly inwardly and set her hands on her stomach.

Misty sighed and drove towards the parking lot. She fortunately found a parking space near the entrance and she pulled the key out of the ignition. "Let's go!" Misty cheered and hopped out her car.

Dawn jumped out of the convertible without opening the door. She nearly bumped into the door of the car next to her.

"Hey, watch where you are going!" Dawn shrieked and glared at the person in front of her. A small blush flushed into her face as she realized who it was.

"Why don't you, troublesome?" Paul said indifferently. His cold voice sent shivers up Dawn's back. Strangely, she didn't mind. Paul turned the other direction and completely ignored Dawn's presence.

"Ugh, he makes me so pissed!" Dawn snarled and stormed off after him, leaving her friends behind at the car.

Misty and May looked at each other and snickered. "Good thing she won't be able to get us for what were going to do!" They grinned to each other and ran after their friend, hopefully getting there in time for them to stop her from attacking Paul.

Misty and May huffed before they grabbed onto Dawn's shirt. They held her back and she clawed the air, hoping that it had been Paul's face. "Stop attacking Paul, you need to learn how to contain your _feelings_." Misty smiled towards her friend who blushed in return.

Paul stood there clueless and waited for his companions to approach. Drew and Ash swung their arms and loosely rested them on Paul's shoulder. Paul growled, but let it go reluctantly when he realized that there wasn't any point with arguing with Ash and Drew.

"Oh, hey, you know what?" May asked quickly, a bit too quickly. It made everyone look at her strangely. May shot Dawn a look and smirked. "Drew and I wanted to go play some games, _alone_." May hissed the last part to emphasize it, and pretty much threaten Drew to come or else he was dead meat. It didn't really matter to them both though since they had been going out for a while.

"We do?" Drew pondered out loud and flicked his hair. He held out a rose to May who gingerly plucked it from his hands and leaned up to his ear. At first, it looked like she pecked him on the check, which most of us thought she did, but I could see that her lips were moving. She was whispering something to him.

Drew's smirk didn't falter even though she didn't kiss him. Instead, his smirk widened. He turned around and shot Paul a look. Paul ignored the look, thinking it was insignificant and stupid, he didn't even know why he was here, just like Dawn.

I nudged May to test what her reaction would be. She didn't react. That confirmed that she didn't kiss Drew, if she did, she would be blushing. "Hold on Dawn, I need to talk to Misty real quick, come on, let's go find something to do really quick before we split up." May chirped and pushed her friend towards the bathroom.

May leaned over to Misty and whispered something to her. Misty visibly tensed, but then smiled. She whispered something back and they giggled.

"You guys!" Dawn whined. "Don't go off telling each other secrets and not tell me!" Dawn hissed and grabbed both of her friends by the arms.

They responded with deep breaths and snorts. Even through Dawn could be dense at times, she knew that they were trying to stifle laughter.

"Oh, Dawn, we are only talking about the mystery of Brendan's hair!" May covered up quickly and tapped her chin.

"Yeah, I thought he was an Albino, but people say he has black hair…" Misty added. She crossed her arms and rubbed her chin like an old man rubbing his beard. "Oh, they also say that his white hair is a hat…" Misty furrowed her brows and threw her head back in the sky. "WHY IS THIS WORLD SO CONFUSING?" Misty shouted and squeezed her eyes shut.

A few people who were passing by gave her a strange look. May laughed nervously and pushed her friend out of the way to make sure that no other people thought she was mental or insane.

"God Misty, is something wrong with you? You're never really like that…seriously…" Dawn wrinkled her nose like something smelled bad, but it was her way to show her friends that she knew something was fishy.

"RELAX DAWN! YOU NEED TO CHIZZLE OUT!" Misty shouted again, making more people look at her. May sighed and shoved all three of them into the bathrooms. The room was plainly white. The lights flickered every now and then drawing flies' attention to the light. They buzzed around, making Dawn swipe her hand in the air every few moments. The room was brightly white, making it seem like the whole room was bleached, but a thin black line ran through the tiles as a 'design' in the bathroom.

"Okay, One, MISTY, you _need_ to calm down." May shook her head disapprovingly. "Two, Dawn, you need to relax, like what Misty said, except, I wouldn't really mind if you ignored the 'Chazzle part…" May trailed off and pursed her lips in confusion.

"It's Chizzle." Misty corrected. She waved her hands in the air like a drunken person and stood in front of Dawn. "Okay. I'm fine, but you better get a date with Paul because if you don't, we are going to torture your life for the rest of eternity…" Misty threatened. Her old personality all came rushing back as she pulled out her Mallet.

"Jeez, I don't get how you can randomly pull out your mallet from nowhere…" Dawn gulped when she saw Misty's infamous mallet. She backed away from her now violent friend. "Um…I'll be outside." Dawn mumbled and ran out the bleached bathroom.

"That went well…" Misty scratched her head and put her Mallet back into her small backpack that she hid, behind her, underneath her over sized shirt. "It might prove handy if I'm going on a date with Ash." She smirked to herself. May chuckled lightly and grabbed her friends hand and pulled her outside of the bathroom.

* * *

Dawn was tapping her foot outside, waiting for her friends. Drew, Ash, and Paul were beside her, having a conversation of their own.

"So, what were you guys planning to do?" Ash asked. He readjusted his hat on his head and gave a goofy grin to his friends. Dawn looked down to the ground and shuffled her feet. She didn't really talk to them about what they were doing.

"Oh! Well, you know Drew and I want to go play some games and win some stuffed-animals!" May responded happily. She clapped her hands and skipped over to Drew. Not something you see every day.

"Well, I suppose Ash and I can go get some food to eat, probably some ice cream or something." Misty bit her lower lip and looked up at the sun that was beating down on them. They didn't exactly realize how hot it was until Misty mentioned the ice cream. "And then we'll probably go on the roller-coasters!" She added, but paused. "Wait, maybe we should go on the rides first…that would probably be better so we wouldn't like…puke all over the amusement park." Misty chuckled.

Everyone watched her in amusement as she continued to rambled and debate to herself whether or not she should go eat ice cream first, or ride the roller-coasters. "Misty, calm down…we'll just go with the flow." Ash butted into her debate and flashed a smile. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and nodded his head.

Misty opened her mouth to protest, when Ash's stomach grumbled. He quickly got into vital position and wrapped his arms around his stomach and crouched down on the floor. "Time calls for some food." Ash managed to choke out. He face was going red from the pressure he was putting on his stomach.

Everyone laughed except for Paul, who just stood there smirking at his companion. Misty nodded and helped Ash up. "Seriously Ash, you need to shut your stomach up for at least an hour." She rolled his eyes and started heading off towards the Carnival's food court. She looked behind her shoulder and waved to her remaining friends that were left behind. "Call me when you guys are done, we'll meet up somewhere and do the last activity together." She called and then turned her attention back to guiding Ash to the food court. They departed after one last rumble of Ash's stomach.

"Ash never changes." May laughed and wrapped an arm around Drew's waist. Dawn and Paul looked at the two of them in awkward silence. May and Drew glanced at their two friends and let out a laugh.

"You guys seriously need to get together already!" Drew suggested. May silenced him and took his hands. "Remember." She tapped his forehead. Drew smirked and pecked his girlfriend on the lips. She smiled back and glanced at the two again, who both were finding the ground more interesting than their friend's love scene.

The couple chuckled together and wrapped their arms around each other. Drew looked Paul in the eye. "Hey, why don't you come with me? I need to talk to you really quick." Drew said quickly, and pulled him away, leaving May and Dawn to chat.

"Oh, come with me real quick, I have the best idea for us to do while we wait for them!" May smiled at Dawn and tugged her friend towards a shady corner of the carnival. Dawn didn't feel so sure about this. She was about to protest, but May held a hand over her eyes. "Come on Dawn, don't be such a scardy cat!" May giggled and guided Dawn towards an unknown destination.

"May…" Dawn started, but she was cut off by a shrill scream. "Please don't tell me that you're taking me to the-," Dawn whimpered, but May cut her off by shaking Dawn back and forth.

"Calm down, there is nothing to be afraid about! I'm sure that you won't get hurt, besides, everything is fake you know!" May chuckled and pushed Dawn closer to the house. Dawn responded with a shiver. The creaking noise of the house became closer and louder.

"May, May…MAY!" Dawn screamed. She tried to protest, but May didn't respond. The creaking of the house became loud enough for her to metaphorically touch. Dawn reached out her hands in attempt to push herself away from the building, but instead, she ended up pushing a door. "LET ME SEE!" Dawn screamed.

"Okay!" May giggled and let go of Dawn, but before she let Dawn turn around, May pushed her friend into the house.

Dawn reached out and tried to prevent the door from shutting, but the door automatically shut by itself, blocking her way from her friend. "MAY!" Dawn screamed. She continued to scream her friends name out of anger and fear.

The house was dark, almost pitch black. Dawn could only see the faint outline of light in the distance. Her heart hammered in her chest as she slowly crept towards the door. She made sure that her steps were light so she wouldn't catch any attention.

A loud bang sounded, and several screams from a different area pierced through the air. Dawn bit her lip roughly to prevent herself from screaming along with them. She didn't want to get one of the peoples' to have them send a 'zombie' after her.

The creaking noise sounded again, but this time, it was much closer to her. "Shoot…" Dawn muttered under her breath. She knew that they had found out that she was in the house, and that she was their next target to scare. Dawn slipped away through the dark, trying to get as far away from the creaking noise as she could get. Her heart rate spiked up and her hands became sweaty. Dawn's breath became ragged and she inhaled sharply.

Then she saw it. Two red eyes pieced through the darkness, illuminating its path towards her. It was staring straight at her with wild eyes.

"It's fake." Dawn murmured under her breath, trying to calm herself down. The eyes seemed to get one step closer and a slight outline of a figure appeared. The dark shadow of a deformed figure moved in ragged steps towards Dawn. She closed her eyes and tried to pretend that this wasn't happening, but when she opened her eyes, she only realized that the figure had gotten closer.

This drove Dawn to no other choice. Her stomach boiled wildly with fear and her skin prickled with sweat, the cold, sticky sweat from fear. Dawn felt her throat tighten up and her chest rise sharply. She finally lost her cool and let out her gut feeling, her instinct.

Dawn let out an ear-piercing scream that shook her whole body. She felt her throat grow raspy towards the end. Her scream continued to drag, but she felt fear still bubbling in her stomach. All the zombie did was look at her and continue to advance towards her with quicker motions. The seventeen year old dropped to her knees and plugged her ears. "No, this is a nightmare!" Dawn shouted loudly, mostly to herself.

A growl sounded from behind her which made her jump even more. Dawn let out another scream and squeezed her eyes shut. She noticed that the zombie was still in front of her.

"Shut up troublesome." A familiar voice grunted. His voice seemed to soothe Dawn in her situation, but it also made her extremely irritated since he called her 'troublesome.' Of course, at this time, Dawn didn't exactly have the time to retort, instead, Dawn decided to cling onto him for her dear life.

"P-P-Paul…" Dawn mumbled and gasped onto his shirt, making wrinkles in it since she bunched it up tightly with her fingers. She buried her face in his chest and she heard his heartbeat, which surprisingly sped up.

"Could you calm down?" Paul grumbled and rolled his eyes. He was glad that they were in a dark room because it hid his blush on his face perfectly. He felt his head thump faster as she buried her face into his chest. Paul sighed at her action, but didn't want to pull her off either because one, he liked her there, and two, she would probably cry if he pulled her away, so it left him to comfort the seventeen year old.

"Paul…I'm scared." Dawn said in a raspy voice. She bit her lower lip, which was now quivering. Paul looked into her eyes sympathetically for a moment, but then let his mask slip back on. He patted her back every now in then to try to comfort her.

"Well, I can tell you're scared." Paul finally snorted. "Who in the right mind would say you're enjoying this if I can hear your scream from the planet Mars." Paul smirked at Dawn reaction. She gaped up at him in horror and narrowed her eyes.

"What did you say?" Dawn retorted this time, but in a raspy voice. She attempted to growl, but it turned out more like a croak.

Paul smirked and let out a light laugh. Dawn beamed up at him when she heard him laugh. It made her feel safe.

"You should laugh more often." Dawn croaked and closed her eyes slowly. She felt his breathing slowly and steadily.

Paul's head snapped up suddenly and he glanced around the room. "There are a lot of them…" He growled and whipped around.

"What?" Dawn frowned and looked around her. She saw nothing but darkness. She squinted and peered out to the darkness again and saw it. Maybe a dozen pair of eyes, staring at the two of them.

"Dawn, get behind me." Paul sighed, knowing that she would probably scream again if one of the 'zombies' tried to attack her. "Make sure you bite your tongue so you don't scream because I'll actually be in this room this time." Paul rolled his eyes and peered back at all the zombies surrounding them. "Hm…that's funny, there are less zombies now…" Paul trailed off and heard another scream from the distance. "Ah, new visitors." Paul muttered sarcastically and grabbed Dawn's hand.

"Follow me, I know that way out, since Drew shoved me in here." Paul growled at the reminder of his friends actions.

"Funny, because that's what May did to me…" Dawn tapped her chin with her free finger. "Ah!" Dawn snapped her free fingers. "It was a set-up…" Dawn sighed, knowing what Paul's reaction was going to be, but to her surprise, he didn't say anything, he just nodded his head and looked forward.

"Funny…" Dawn trailed off and looked up at Paul with her round cobalt eyes. Onyx met with Cobalt and sparks seemed to fly. They both looked away quickly and stared at the ground. Paul looked ahead, nearing the exit door.

Dawn stopped abruptly, making Paul tug on her hand. Her arm was yanked forward, but she didn't move. Dawn looked down at the ground with a scowl on her face, similar to the one that Paul always had on his face, except with a hint of sadness.

"What's wrong?" Paul said sharply, wanting to leave the place as fast as he could. He was already humiliated by attempting to comfort her.

"It's nothing…well…it's just…" Dawn started. Her tongue fumbled over which words to chose. She scrunched up her nose and looked at Paul strangely.

"What is it troublesome?" Paul asked gruffly. His eyes darted around the room to make sure they weren't being followed.

"I…I don't know how to say this…" Dawn frowned. She scrunched up her tunic and let it fall back down, only to repeat that process a few more times.

"Seriously Dawn, just hurry up." Paul blurted. He bit his tongue afterwards when he realized what had left his lips. He blushed and looked away, this time, Dawn noticed.

"Paul?" She asked, suddenly feeling more courageous. "Are you upset that May and Drew set us up?" Dawn frowned. Her heart panged wildly in her chest. She was already outweighing what would happen if she heard a 'yes' or a 'no.'

"No…why?" Paul answered slowly. He didn't say anything after that, he let Dawn do the rest of the talking.

"I wanted to know…because…" Dawn frowned and poked her index fingers together nervously. She shifted the weight on her feet and looked up into his onyx eyes. This time, their eyes met, and they didn't break the contact. "Because…I think I love you…" Dawn looked straight into his eyes and said the words clearly.

Paul tilted his head to the side slightly, but once the words registered, his face scrunched up. Dawn felt her heart drop to her stomach.

"You think?" Paul asked. To Dawn's surprise, Paul threw his head back and let out a deep chuckle. "Dawn…?" He asked when he quieted down.

"Yes?" Dawn answered quietly, flushing a deep shade of red because Paul was laughing at her. She was still feeling doubt in her heart. She fidgeted her legs and let herself bounce up and down on the ball of her feet.

"Dawn…I don't think I love you…" Paul sighed and closed his eyes. He gave her a quick hug and bit his lower lip.

Dawn felt her eyes fill with tears. She didn't know how to respond. "Wha-?" Dawn felt her lip quiver her heart drop even lower then her stomach. She felt queasy and wanted Paul to let go of her. "Then let go of me." Dawn said boldly, but on the brink of tears.

"I'm not going to," Paul said sternly. "I don't think I love you…" He paused and sucked in a breath. "I know so." He finished. "Dawn, I love you." Paul smiled and brushed his lips against hers.

Dawn burst into tears. "P-Paul…I love you too." She managed to whisper. Dawn closed her cobalt eyes and smashed her lips against Paul's. They lasted that way a little longer and broke apart for air.

Applause thundered in the haunted house and Paul and Dawn turned around. All the zombies stared at them intently, but clapped their hands. Dawn let out a loud snort and then a fit of giggles.

Paul watched her giggled and chuckled quietly to himself. He felt a smirk pull on his lips. Dawn's fingers worked their way into Paul's hand and they waved good-byes to the zombies.

Dawn left the Horror house laughing her guts out. Paul gave her a funny look, but still wore the smirk on his face. Four of their friends stood outside waiting for them.

"You seemed to be on an emotional high today." Paul teased Dawn. Dawn in return whipped around and playfully punched Paul.

"So, are we cool?" Dawn asked with a smile. Paul snorted and turned his head to the other side arrogantly.

"Troublesome, I thought we're more than cool. Aren't you my girlfriend now?" Paul snickered and watched Dawn blush from her neck down. He chuckled lightly and snaked his arm around her waist. They brushed past May, Drew, Misty and Ash who were standing there in total shock. Ash was in such shock, that his snow fell of his snow cone.

Dawn looked back over her shoulder to take a peek at her friends. She sent then a quick wink and they dispersed, feeling accomplished. May and Drew decided to go and spend more time to themselves, and Ash and Misty went for another round of rides.

"I'm actually kind of glad that Drew set us up." Paul admitted once Dawn and Paul were away from their group of friends. He snorted though "I don't think they'll ever get appreciation from be again."

"What if they help out with the wedding?" Dawn smiled, thinking of her future already. She smiled brightly at the thought of kids and grandchildren.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves." Paul grunted. He blushed slightly at the thought of Dawn and him being married.

"Aw, come on you sour puss, I'm sure I'd be fun!" Dawn beamed up to her boyfriend. She rested her head on his shoulder.

A faint vibration was felt in her pocket, and she pulled her phone out. She stared at the screen blankly for a while, but quickly registered in her mind that she got a text message from May, asking her for all the details later. Dawn giggled at her friends curiosity and was about to unlock the screen when the picture of her and Kenny popped up.

Dawn watched the picture for a moment longer, but smiled to herself. "Hey, Paul, let's take a picture together!" Dawn chirped and held her cell phone out in front of the two of the teens.

Paul didn't say anything. He kept a straight face as he looked into the camera. The click was sounded and Paul stood back straight. Dawn giggled when she saw the picture. "I'll send it to you, and we can have it as our screensavers." Dawn smiled.

Paul nodded his head and looked ahead of him. He linked his arms with his girlfriend and gestured towards the Ferris wheel.

"No, Paul I'm scared of heights." Dawn whimpered and tugged on her boyfriend's jacket sleeve.

"Well, you just got over one fear, why not get over another?" Paul shrugged, another smirk was upturning on his lips.

"Wait!" Dawn bit her lower lip nervously, but Paul was already dragging her away. A flash of chestnut brown caught her attention and she stopped. Paul pulled on her arm again.

"Is something wrong?" Paul asked her, waving his hand in his air in front of her face. Dawn didn't answer, she continued to stare at the familiar hue of chestnut brown. His big brown eyes and familiar smile warmed Dawn's heart. She realized that another girl stood next to him. Her fiery red hair stood out against the crowd and a pair of black sunglasses rested in her hair. She held up a Galmeow plush while Kenny held up a Prinplup plush. He pecked her on the lips and they laughed together.

"Is something wrong?" Paul repeated. He shook Dawn's shoulders this time. "Are you okay Dawn? Err…troubl-," Paul started with her nickname again, but she cut him off.

"I'm fine!" Dawn smiled bigger than she ever has. She flipped open her phone and deleted the picture of her and Kenny. "Now, and I can start fresh." She whispered.

Paul gave her a strange look and continued to pull Dawn towards the Ferris wheel. He sighed in relief when she stopped protesting and started to follow her boyfriend to the Ferris wheel.

Dawn gave Paul a quick kiss on the lips and closed her eyes. Her heart soared, and her mind sang from all the guilt that was freed from her heart.

~FIN~

* * *

Yay! I finally finished something! Sorry you guys for not updating in forever, I promise that I will soon okay?

*cries* I'm so glad I finished this, I love it though! Aha, PLease review to show your gratitute HAHAH JK...

But, could you please review? I know that this probabably won't get as many as I want.

Well, Peace out people (No idea where that came from)

UNTIL NEXT UPDATE! (which might be a while, never from this one since it was a one-shot)

~Desstorjo


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